Breaking Down

How to remove the wall you are building around your heart

SOME DAYS

Some days…most days lately, it may seem like the world can encumber us with a turbulent place and a very confusing space. It presents us with experiences, sensations, perceptions and beliefs that create anxious moments, stress and general feelings of hopelessness when we are bombarded by flash-bomb like glimpses of major issues, feelings of disharmony or general apathy across many major issues.

I find a little anxiety can be effective to motivate me to move forward: away from a lack of participation, directly into the fray of the experience that is creating the challenge. It becomes ineffective when we allow ourselves to succumb to any such emotional stimulant. We can become paralyzed with fear, and unable to take those steps forward.

THOSE MOMENTS

When we latch on to those moments, they begin to accumulate like a thick dust, that becomes sand, then it hardens into rock. With enough acceptance of that paralyzing fear, that sediment: those moments begin to surround our person with a debilitating wall. Eventually, that wall of moments surrounds us; traps us in that turbulent and confusing space – and it becomes a never ending cycle of build up and accumulation, light blocked by darkness.

Those moments are often far away topics: world issues, politics, strife in a foreign land. Those moments are all that is closest to you: unsavory experiences of a bad day at work, in your home, a quarrel with a sibling, a friend. Anxious moments experienced with your spouse, your child, your parents, all grains of sand continuously piling up. The wall rises and bonds together over time; it surrounds us with heartbreaking stories and limiting beliefs and blocks out the real view. We feel stifled, trapped, unable to feel peace, unable to remember love, no balance, no harmony...no sleep. We are stuck, spinning, lost, blind to everything but the wall in front of us – unable to break free.

Its thickness and rough surface dulls the messages from our heart. We lose the signal of our north stars as the grit forces us to close our eyes. The darkness breeds more fear, anxiety, anger, pain, sadness, hopelessness. How can we escape the moments embedded in that wall? The sounds resonate with all that we never wanted, but that we have allowed to pile up.

STOP

STOP...breathe. Breathe in…breathe out…breathe deep, past the grit. Breathe until the air feels cool, free…breathe until your breath rushes through your body and lifts your spirit up. Breathe in and then breathe out until the noise and the dust subside. Until there is only the sound of your breath, free and full. Your mind quiets down and your shoulders drop with relief.

Breathe until you are able to stop allowing it all to build up. Breathe until you stop adding to the moments, the stories. Learn to let each moment go. You may not be able to ignore those moments, but you do not have to hold and hang on to them. You do not have to let them pile up. Let them go. Listen closely to the sound of your heart. What does it say? Listen. Breathe. Feel the air clearing. Feel the dust begin to fall away from the wall. Feel the sand blow away with each breath out. Feel the power of your breathe increase, cleanse and then feel the rocks roll past as you breathe out. Feel the air clear and the light shine bright, as those moments pass. Don’t ignore them, feel them, experience them and…then let them go.

Learn about what is stifling you, from every angle. Listen to voices that don’t confirm your biases, that share a different perspective. Allow others to be who they are and let them live their experience. Mel Robbins says ‘let them’ and it makes so much sense. Let others be, without letting them infringe on who you are…and pushing you towards someone who you are not. It’s your life, your choice, your dreams and ambitions that will be rewarded. Be grateful for those moments that show you a direction you do not want to take, and listen to your heart to see the path you should.

Now you are free. Now you can experience that other type of moment. A moment not burdened with anxiety, not bridled by fear. As the other moments pass, you begin to see more clearly, hear your heart speak its truth to you without the distortion, distraction: more signal than noise. Feel the real emotion and not the one tainted by the dust and grit of the other moments. Feel that wonderful moment of clarity that is now, that is you breathing freely…taking you to the next moment…

That Moment

That wonderful moment you realize,

That within your heart,

Exists great power,

Exists exquisite beauty,

Exists unconditional love and kindness,

Exists your real hopes and dreams,

Exists, everything you need to be you …and more.

That wonderful moment,

When you wake up and understand,

All of those same things…and more, exists in others,

And the key to extract them from all of us,

Is Love.